Bethany Haines, the daughter of murdered Scottish aid worker David Haines, has received a potential lead in the search for her father's remains. The coordinates, sent anonymously, could point to a burial site in Syria.
A New Lead in the Search
David Haines, an ex-RAF aircraft engineer from Perth, was abducted in 2013 while working at a refugee camp in Syria. He was held hostage by Alexanda Kotey, El Shafee Elsheikh, Mohammed Emwazi, and Aine Davis. In 2014, a video of him kneeling next to Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, ended with his beheading. His body has never been located.
Bethany, who has become an investigator, told ITV News that a set of coordinates sent to her by an anonymous social media account could be key. She said: "We've had this set of co-ordinates for years. I have a map of the area on my wall. I wake up to it every day. I hope we will get there, and I hope we will find what we are looking for."
The Wickr Man and the Coordinates
In 2022, while in the US for the trial of Kotey and Elsheikh, Bethany received a message from an anonymous X account. It asked her to download the app Wickr to speak with someone who allegedly had information on her father's remains. She met the man, whom she calls "the Wickr man," in person. He shared coordinates for a site in Syria that US officials considered a possible burial location.
Unable to find official confirmation, Bethany visited Kotey in prison in Virginia to verify details of her exchange that weren't public knowledge. She left satisfied the man was a genuine insider. Bethany said: "It all gave credit to the Wickr man - to what he was saying and to these coordinates as well."
Efforts to Explore the Site
Bethany worked with the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre, a civil society group, which deemed the coordinates potentially credible. The centre's team looked at the site but found no surface evidence of human remains. They now want to return with specialist equipment to explore further.
However, Syrian officials have blocked access to the site and others. Bethany is calling for the new Syrian government to grant access to the area and other sites where victims of the war are thought to be buried. She added: "This step could also help Syria's people get the closure they deserve from the acts committed by Assad and Isis."
